Year: 2013

The Alliance for the Arts GreenMarket continues its Fall & Winter Growing Season Workshop Series on Saturday, October 19 at 10:30AM with a presentation on the basics of vegetable and plant propagation. Starting your own seeds and reproducing from cuttings is an affordable and rewarding way to keep your garden growing and to provide an abundance of plants to share with friends. This session will cover choosing your varieties, timing of plantings, container options, potting media, tips specific to different plant species and more.

This workshop is presented by Millisa Bell, also known as “The Unruly Gardener.” Bell is a Florida native, organic gardener, permaculturist, and beekeeper who shares her passion for local food production through speaking and teaching events. She believes there is nothing more worthy than devoting quality time to the food we eat, and that one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves and our communities is an understanding of how to grow and cultivate a portion our own food supply.

The GreenMarket’s Fall & Winter Growing Season Workshop Series continues every 1st and 3rd Saturday through March. The series is intended to inspire the community into more sustainable practices, including growing their own food organically in small spaces like backyards and patios. The workshops are free, but a $5 donation is suggested, to help the Alliance continue to bring these programs to the public.

The cooler months are prime vegetable growing season here in Southwest Florida. With many residents and seasonal visitors discovering the benefits of backyard gardening, the Alliance for the Arts GreenMarket is bringing the community a new series of free “Growing Season” workshops.

Presented by local growers, master gardeners, and homesteaders, the classes will take place at 10:30AM on the 1^st and 3^rd Saturdays of the month beginning in October and running through March 2014. Presenters will cover everything you need to know to grow a successful organic garden, including soil preparation, growing techniques, earth-friendly pest control, crop selection, what to do with small or shady spaces, preserving the harvest, composting, and more. The workshops are free, but a suggested $5 donation will help sustain the market and support year round community activities at the Alliance.

In September the Alliance for the Arts opens Exposed: Face and Figure.  The month long invitational exhibition features two and three dimensional artwork created by 31 local and international artists.  It offers an opportunity for viewers to come face to face with engaging and provocative depictions of the human form.  Exposed: Face & Figure opens to the public with a reception on Friday, September 6 from 5-7:30PM and remains on display until September 30.  The exhibition is sponsored by Suncoast Photo Solutions.  The Alliance fall fundraiser on September 21, Take a Nude Home, is tied into the Exposed exhibit.

The featured artists are: David Acevedo, Todd Babb, Carol Broman, Andy Browne, Jerry Churchill, Pat Collins, Tracy Cullimore, Geoffrey Hammel, David Hatchett, Lily Hatchett, Raymond Hernandez, Doug Heslep, Marcus Jansen, Krista Johnson, Leo Johnson, Jonathan Kane, Bryon Paul McCartney, Kellen Beck Mills, Dale & Jeff Ocasio, Darryl Pottorf, Sherry Rohl, Diana Rutherford, Arturo Samaniego, Ellen Sayet, Alicia Schmidt, Jeffrey Scott Lewis, Ellen Sheppard, Michelle Tricca, Lawrence Voytek, Gordon Warren & Peter Zell.

Call 239-939-2787 for more information about the exhibit and all of the other opportunities to engage the arts provided by the Alliance.

The Acoustic Music Society of Southwest Florida presents three hours of live music on the theater stage at the Alliance for the Arts on Sunday, September 8 from 2-5:00PM.  The show features the local bluegrass favorites The Bug Tussle Ramblers and Captain Joe & the Bottom Feeders, as well as Bill Metts with his acoustic guitar.  This is the first in a series of Sunday afternoon concerts, which continue in the theatre on October 13, November 3 and December 8.

Tickets are $7 at the door, or $5 for Alliance members.  Seating is open and first come, first serve.  Children 12 and under are free if accompanied by an adult.  Doors open at 1:30PM.  Call 239-939-2787 for more information.

After its wildly successful 2012 fundraiser “Urban Decaydence” at Marcus Jansen’s Unit A Gallery, which blended cocktails, fine tapas, surreal performance art and live music, the Alliance for the Arts knew it had to come up with something truly interesting and edgy for its 2013 fundraiser and that is exactly what Event Chair Jane Lane has done with Take a Nude Home. This interactive art party begins at 6:30PM on Saturday, September 21 in the gallery and theatre at the Alliance campus in Fort Myers.  The event features fine foods from some of the area’s best chefs, interactive art elements, live music from Kat Epple, Aiyb Dieng and Lawrence Voytek, and a silent auction of uniquely themed packages.  Area artists have created scores of ‘mini nudes’ specifically for this event, including Marcus Jansen, Darryl Pottorf, David Acevedo, Gordon Warren and many more.  All attendees will get to literally take a mini nude home.

The September exhibit “Exposed: Face & Figure” will provide the backdrop in the main gallery. It features work by 35 area artists and remains on display until September 30 and is open to the public Monday through Friday from 9AM-5PM and Saturday from 9AM-1PM.

Take a Nude Home urges guests to explore the values and skills of the creation of art focused on the human form.  It will be a night to remember.  Tickets are $100 and are available online or at the Alliance.

Take Home a Nude is proudly sponsored by Dr. Stephen Prendiville Facial Plastic Surgery, Assuage Spa, Dick Prescott, Linda & Charles Idelson, with media support from Florida Weekly & Toti Media, Inc.  Culinary sponsors include Crave Culinaire, Prawnbroker, Norman Love Confections, The Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village, Market 92 Waterfront Bar & Bistro, La Trattoria and Café Napoli. All Out Bail Bonds and Stella Artois are the beverage sponsors.  Red Salon is contributing to the interactive art elements. Member Artist Gordon Warren provided the logo artwork.